Chile: Patagonia Dams Rejected

By THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

June 10, 2014

A government commission rejected an $8 billion proposal to dam Patagonian rivers to meet growing energy demands, handing a victory to environmentalists who praised the ruling on Tuesday. The commission, including the ministers of agriculture, energy, mining, economy and health, voted unanimously to reject the HidroAysén plan, which would have tamed two of the world’s wildest rivers, the Baker and Pascua, and built more than 1,000 miles of power lines to supply energy to central Chile. Patricio Rodrigo, executive secretary of the Patagonia Defense Council, called the decision “the greatest triumph of the environmental movement in Chile.” Chile is strapped for energy, but most Chileans opposed the plan.